Wellesley Hills Financial Represents IRIS CRM in Sale to Network Merchants

NEWTON CENTRE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–IRIS CRM, the premier business management and CRM software provider for the payments industry, has been acquired by full commerce enablement platform, Network Merchants, LLC. (“NMI”), for an undisclosed sum. Wellesley Hills Financial, the Boston-based financial technology investment bank, served as IRIS’ exclusive strategic and financial advisor for the transaction. 

Founded in 2010, IRIS continues to offer best-of-breed business management software for merchant services organizations. The company’s cloud-based platform provides ISOs and other payments processors with the value-added solutions to manage the entire merchant lifecycle, including lead management, appointment scheduling, onboarding support, and residual payout calculations.

By combining the resources and product offerings of NMI and IRIS, the two companies will be better positioned to support their ISO, ISV, Sponsor Bank, and PayFac partners, cementing the combined entity’s status as a fintech and full commerce-enablement juggernaut. Through this acquisition, IRIS CRM will expand NMI’s capabilities through sophisticated lead management, electronic signature capabilities, TurboApp direct-to-processor onboarding, integrated portfolio reporting across a growing list of acquirers and residuals income calculations – all of which are not possible with other CRMs. Dimitri Akhrin, president of IRIS CRM, will continue in his role in the combined organization and remain a key stakeholder.

“We are excited to join forces with NMI and enter this next chapter by combining our expertise and teams,” said IRIS President Dimitri Akhrin. “Pairing NMI’s best-in-class transaction and full commerce-enablement capabilities with IRIS’s suite of back-office functionality will create the most comprehensive software solution for merchant services providers in the market today. I am extremely grateful for the Wellesley Hills team’s guidance and strategic insight throughout the transaction.”

“It was a privilege to work with IRIS on this project,” said Anthony Malatesta, Director at Wellesley Hills Financial and lead banker on the deal for the firm. “IRIS is an extremely unique asset in the financial technology and software space. The strategic alignment between IRIS and NMI will surely make the combined entity one to watch in the future. There’s nothing else comparable. “We believe this transaction is indicative of the continued high market-demand for focused, verticalized software platforms, especially one with a fintech tie-in.”

About Wellesley Hills Financial
Wellesley Hills Financial is an investment bank based in Boston, MA focusing on fintech, payments technologies, and B2B software verticals. It offers both buy-side and sell-side M&A services, and fundings through a robust network of debt and equity capital providers.